The National Science Foundation (NSF) awarded a 5-year, $829,608 Project Grant to the Sitka Tribe of Alaska to establish the Knowledge Warding Against Toxin Levels Center for Oceans and Human Health. The Center, co-directed by the tribe's Resource Protection Division Director and a public health academic, will address key unknowns surrounding paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP), which the 4th National Climate Assessment classified as a public health emergency. The Center will conduct three main projects: (1) understanding the impacts of climate change on shellfish toxin exposure, (2) evaluating the toxicity of shellfish samples, and (3) assessing community shellfish harvesting, consumption patterns, and risk perceptions around PSP. The project will leverage expertise from the Southeast Alaska Tribal Ocean Research network, Kodiak Area Native Association, and Sitka Tribe of Alaska Environmental Research Lab. This award is funded through NSF's Geosciences program (CFDA 47.050), which supports fundamental research and infrastructure development across atmospheric, earth, and ocean sciences.
Generated 1/28/25, 7:58 AM